Brett Kirkman, administrator and CEO of Gastro Arkansas of Little Rock, has been appointed to the board of directors of the Arkansas Health Insurance Marketplace, which manages the state-based health insurance exchange.

Cheryl Smith, the former director of Utah's health insurance exchange, has been hired as the executive director of the Arkansas Health Insurance Marketplace. The nonprofit organization was created, and compelled to explore the creation of the state's own health insurance marketplace, by the Arkansas Legislature.

Oct. 1 will mark one of the biggest changes in the history of health insurance in the United States. On that day, open enrollment begins in the Health Insurance Marketplace. Several unanswered questions exist about the ACA.